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Ethereum's Account Abstraction: Bridging the Gap to User Accessibility
Beginner
2023-11-07 | 5m
TL;DR
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Vitalik Buterin introduces account abstraction as a way for Ethereum accounts to be controlled by smart contract code instead of private keys, making cryptocurrency management as easy as sending an email.
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This concept originates from the EIP-4337 proposal, deployed on the Ethereum mainnet in March 2023.
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The implementation of account abstraction will greatly improve the users' on-chain interaction experience and lower the threshold for average adopters to enter the blockchain world.
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Account abstraction will lead to better privacy, flexibility, scalability, as well as lower costs and greater efficiencies, thus helping to unlock greater value and dynamism in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's founder, unveiled account abstraction and its latest updates at the EthCC conference in Paris. He emphasized the importance of account abstraction, a feature that simplifies the user experience by providing a unified interactive interface for smart contract accounts and regular accounts, enhancing the flexibility and applicability of Ethereum. So what is account abstraction? What changes will it bring to the Ethereum ecosystem?
What is account abstraction?
In Ethereum, two primary account types exist: Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) and Contract Accounts (CAs). EOAs, controlled by private keys, allow users to send, trade, and receive ETH tokens directly, and it is the account type most familiar to average users. Contract accounts are controlled by smart contract code and have no private key.
Ethereum account abstraction, also called Abstract Account (AA), is the abstraction of EOAs and CAs so that they can be considered the same type of account. As Vitalik envisions, in the future, people will switch from their current EOA wallets to smart contract-based wallets. If so, managing a crypto wallet will become as easy as managing an email account.
Simply put, account abstraction is like an upgraded version of EOA and CA but controls both an EOA and multiple CAs, enabling programmability of transactions and more complex functionality, thus improving the security and operability of Ethereum accounts, among other things.
Origin of account abstraction
Ethereum's EIP-4337 proposal is something we must talk about when discussing account abstraction. It was in this proposal that the concept of account abstraction was presented. With its deployment on the Ethereum mainnet in March 2023, EIP-4337 heralds the emergence of more accessible wallets and portals in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Account abstraction sounds like a very abstract concept, but in essence, the abstraction is meant to combine the strengths of existing EOA and CA. In other words, it brings wallets the functionality of smart contracts, thus making it a smart contract-based wallet. This change enables innovative wallet designs like account recovery, multi-signature authorization, auto-pay, personalization features, and more.
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Challenging aspects
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EOA
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CA
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Account abstraction
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Loss of private key
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Unrecoverable
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Ability to remedy
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Retrievable
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Gas fee
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ETH only
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Rely on Relayer to use other tokens
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Support ERC-20 tokens
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Multi-signature authorization
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Not supported
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Supported
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Supported
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Batch transfer
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Not supported
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Supported
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Supported
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Acting as a deal initiator
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Supported
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Not supported
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Supported
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Why do we need account abstraction
At present, the crypto space is not accessible enough, especially for average users. In particular, the on-chain interaction experience is poor, and users need to spend a lot of time learning before they can manage to sign up on a wallet, not to mention the safekeeping of seed phrase, or make an on-chain transfer. These have been bottlenecks that hinder the large-scale application of blockchain technology.
The vision of EIP-4337 is to achieve user-friendliness and lower the barrier for users to enter the world of blockchain. So, it starts with both ease of use and social recovery to attract new users by improving the UI experience of the crypto wallet and lowering the barrier to use.
The implementation of account abstraction will greatly improve the users' experience of on-chain interaction. For example, with account abstraction, new users do not need to back up their seed phrase when signing up for an account. And when users lose the private keys to their wallets, they can also retrieve them through their social connections. There will also be support for other extensions such as multi-account/multi-chain management, batch transactions, multi-signature transactions, and even the feature to auto-renew.
Advantages of account abstraction
In short, account abstraction will lead to better privacy, flexibility, scalability, as well as lower costs and greater efficiencies, thus helping to unlock greater value and vigor in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Higher Flexibility: Account abstraction can be flexibly managed and controlled through smart contracts, which can then be better adapted to various business scenarios and needs. It supports not only account retrieval after the loss of private key but also setting up multiple-signatures authorization as well as setting of transaction conditions or even complex payment logic.
Higher scalability: Account abstraction can be used to represent complex data structures and status, allowing easier implementation of complex smart contract logic and improving system scalability.
Lower cost and higher efficiency: Due to account abstraction, which allows the sharing of the same address and private key, the workload for contract deployment and maintenance is reduced, leading to improved efficiency in contract deployment and maintenance, thereby enhancing the vitality of the entire Ethereum ecosystem.
However, account abstraction also faces a number of challenges. The first is that the wallets will naturally become more complicated and bring issues in terms of development costs, compatibility, and user privacy. In addition, complex interactive contracts may incur higher gas fees.
What are the consequences of account abstraction?
Average users may not feel much difference, as wallets will not be much different from what they are now in terms of operation, but one thing is for sure: the wallet will have a lot more innovative features.
Wallets are easier to use: There is no need to write down the seed phrase anymore. All are set with just a few taps.
Account recovery feature: Instead of worrying about losing your private key or wallet, you can now recover your account through multiple-factor authentication and social recovery.
Flexible gas payment: You can transact on-chain without any ETH in your wallet. The wallet supports the use of ERC-20 tokens and other coins to pay gas fees.
Multi-signature authorization to improve security: Account abstraction will support multi-signature authorization, which allows for a significant increase in security and can also be used for collaborative management.
More customization features: Users enjoy a wealth of customization services, including automatic payments, pre-approved transactions and bundle transactions.
Wallets that support account abstraction
Compared to established crypto wallets such as MetaMask and imToken, some EIP-4337-based products are starting to emerge as they try to reshape the landscape of the crypto wallet field. Here are a few of these innovative wallets:
Argent
Argent wallet is a cryptocurrency wallet designed with a focus on security and ease of use, with key features such as account social recovery, non-ETH gas fee payment, attack detection, and more.
Braavos
Braavos is an open-source account abstraction layer that provides a simple way to manage multiple accounts and a unified interface for applications. Features include multi-account support, automated processing of account balances and transaction history, scalability, and more.
Avocado
Instadapp is an Ethereum-based DeFi protocol designed to make DeFi simpler and easier to manage. The protocol introduces Avocado, an account abstraction-based wallet whose key features include multi-chain support, safety and security, DeFi services, community governance, and more.
Closing thoughts
Account abstraction is one of the important plans for Ethereum to improve its flexibility and scalability. By abstracting accounts, Ethereum can achieve more functionality and features while also better safeguarding user privacy and security. Whether you are an average user, an investor, or a developer, you may want to keep an eye on the development of Ethereum account abstraction to better utilize the benefits and resources of the network.
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